


I'd like for you and I to go romancing

by Sherlocked



Category: Dungeons & Dragons - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-26
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-03-17 04:20:15
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29711529
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sherlocked/pseuds/Sherlocked
Summary: Drabbles from my current dnd game, which is set in a magicpunk universe. The warlock tiefling has a crush on the orc paladin. Awkward cuteness ensues, because theyre extremely 17.





	I'd like for you and I to go romancing

It would be an understatement to say that, when the tiefling greaser walked in, Alex hoped he would start something so she could call security. 

Or, well. Specifically one member of security.

The other tiefling in question glanced around as if he was looking for something, his entire demeanor changing as he made eye contact with Alex. The slimy grin sealed the deal as he ran his fingers through his greasy hair and moved towards the register she was stationed behind with what he probably thought was a swagger, and Alex fell into a blank smile as she retreated into customer service mode, tucking her hair behind her horns as he moved closer.

“Welcome to Scorching Issue! I’m Alex, do you need help finding anything today?” 

“Hey, Alex.” His voice was almost as oily as his hair as he draped himself over the counter, and she was distracted slightly by the twin urges to recommend a skincare routine and making a mental note to prestidigitate the counter after he left so she wouldn’t have to deal with greasy receipts all day. “I think I’ve found everything I need right here.”

Alex giggled, years of training substituting a more corporately appropriate response than to what she actually wanted to do, which was gag dramatically. 

Scorching Issue not only had a reputation as the mall goth hub, but also for employing majority tieflings. Hell, the Mayfair SI was staffed entirely by tieflings. (Including Steve, who was a human on his resume but wore the horns and tail off a tiefling costume from Spirit of Hallows Eve and was therefore an  _ honorary _ tiefling.) This came with the downside that, given the tiefling stereotype for occasionally mommy but mostly daddy issues, men who should be old enough to know better would occasionally come in and try and hook someone young and insecure. 

“So, what’s a pretty little girl like you doing in a dump like this?” 

“Well, you know,” Alex giggled, the image of naivete. “I work here.”

“Y’know, if you were my girl, you wouldn’t have to work here. I’d treat you right, provide for you, give you everything you’d ever wanted. I’m honestly surprised someone as pretty as you was allowed to work in a dump like this.” He leaned closer, conspiratorial. “Daddy leave you high and dry?”

“Well, I-”

“Cause if  _ I _ was your daddy, that would never happen.” He winked, and Alex had to look away to repress the instinctive gag. He was far from deterred; if anything, his triumphant smirk confirmed that he completely misread her response for bashfulness. “See, I’m movin’ into this town, cause the, uh...underground above the underdark, yknow what I mean?” 

“Oh, really?” 

“Yeah, there’s some Stark character claiming to be a pit fiend who apparently thinks he’s all that, but just you wait.” He grinned. “Gimme a month and Imma run this town.”

Alex was honestly at a loss for words. She knew she wasn’t the smartest person out there, but good  _ gods _ , the chances this man could be this dumb, unplesent, and unlucky all at once. 

Luckily for her, she was saved by her paladin with a shiny security badge.

“Ms Stark, does there seem to be a problem?” 

The tiefling rounded on the newcomer, and paused as he had to look quite a ways up to make contact with the orc pointedly ignoring him for Alex. The half second also gave him the moment he needed to process what the security guard had referred to her as, and he went from a bright orange to a sickly yellow as all the color drained from his face.

“I’m not quite sure? He kept telling me that he should be my daddy, but like, he kept saying it weird? And I think he was telling me about how he was gonna run this town, but I dunno.” Alex looked to the other tiefling, missing the way Rordak’s jaw clenched to squint at the visibly sweating man. “I think I got confused, what was that again?”

His eyes flicked between Alex’s plausible confusion and Rordak’s contained but obvious displeasure. 

“I, uh. I think I gotta. Um. Go.”

“That’s probably for the best, sir.” Rordak shifted over the half step, putting a hand down on the counter as he put himself between the intruder and Alex. “Because making suggestive comments to minors can get you in quite a bit of trouble in these parts.”

The two watched the older man all but run out the door before Rordak looked down at his hand in disgust.

“What was on this counter?”   
“Oh! Right! Sorry! Lemme get that.” Alex caught his hand in her own, carefully reciting the cantrip over it. She ran her thumbs gently over his palm, checking the spells work, before swallowing, unable to look up. “Are you okay?”

“I don’t know, are we?” Her confusion overruled her actual bashfulness, and she blinked up at him.

“Why wouldn’t we be?” It was his turn for his gaze to go down to their hands, his cheeks going a shade of green deeper. 

“I dunno. You didn’t respond to me, is all.”

“What’d’you mean? I waved back, didn’t I?” He blinked back up at her, obviously confused. “You’re the one who was acting all weird.”

He looked at her for a long moment before something obviously clicked, a small smile lighting up his face.

“You didn’t hear me.”

“What do you mean? You didn’t say anything, unless- wait, did I miss a text? I’m  _ so _ sorry, my scroll has been acting up ever since I spilled my oil cleanser on it-” She cut herself off when his hand wrapped around hers, Rordak shaking his head slightly as he huffed out a laugh. 

“Nothing, nevermind. I saw you coming into work, did you wanna ride to and from? We have the same hours, mostly, and you’re on my route- well, you’re not that far out of my way-”

“Yes.” It took Alex a second to register that she’d said it out loud, and it was only because she had to melt at the way Rordak lit up in response.

“Great! That’s- um. Yeah. That’s good, that’s cool. Where did you want- I mean-”

“I could wait for you to finish your rounds in Security and then we could leave from there?”

“That sounds- that sounds like a plan.”

They stood there for a long moment before a gaggle of middle schoolers came in, breaking the spell as they realized how long they’d been holding hands and staring at each other. They broke apart, both turning several shades darker.

“So. Um. Yeah. See you later? For lunch? Maybe? Only if you want to-”

“Maybe, yeah.” Alex busied herself cleaning her counter with a distracted wave of the hand. “You could come by and grab me when you take lunch, or something, if you want.”

“I- yeah. See you, Alex.”

“Later, Rordak.” 

He left the store, leaving Alex to stare at her hand, distracted enough that she didn’t notice her manager come up next to her.

“Ah, young love.” Andria smirked as Alex jumped, her grin widening as the younger tiefling’s cheeks went even darker.

“It’s not  _ like _ that, leave me  _ alone _ .”


End file.
